Apparatus and Method for Phacoemulsification

Abstract

Apparatus and methods for phacoemulsification combine a phacoemulsification needle having an offset feature with a handpiece capable of producing longitudinal motion to create a hybrid phacoemulsification effect that is more efficient than conventional longitudinal handpiece-needle combinations and has been demonstrated under certain conditions to be more efficient than needles used with handpieces providing torsional motion. The phacoemulsification needle is of the type having a hollow passageway that terminates in a straight needle tip formed off-axis from the passageway, allowing the needle tip to move eccentrically when the needle is subjected to torsional or longitudinal vibratory motion. The tip may be flared or may be coextensive with the needle body. The tip may also be angled with respect to the needle body. The aspiration passageway formed through the needle body may be positioned or shaped to be off-axis from the needle body axis.

Description

[0001]This application claims priority from U.S. provisional applications Ser. No. 61 / 152,622, filed 13 Feb. 2009, Ser. No. 61 / 154,763, filed 23 Feb. 2009 and Ser. No. 61 / 155,145, filed 24 Feb. 2009, all of which are incorporated herein, by reference, in their entirety.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]This disclosure relates to surgical instruments and surgical techniques used in eye surgery and more particularly, to phacoemulsification apparatus and methods for their use.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]A common ophthalmological surgical technique is the removal of a diseased or injured lens from the eye. Earlier techniques used for the removal of the lens typically required a substantial incision to be made in the capsular bag in which the lens is encased. Such incisions were often on the order of 12 mm in length.[0004]Later techniques focused on removing diseased lenses and inserting replacement artificial lenses through as small an incision as possible. For example, it is now a commo...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

As an example, endothelial cells can easily be damaged during such collapse and this damage is permanent because these cells do not regenerate.

The great majority of surgeons use longitudinal hand pieces rather than torsional hand pieces, often because torsional phacoemulsification equipment is more expensive than longitudinal equipment, and thus find themselves unable to take advantage of the enhanced phacoemulsification results claimed in torsional phaco.

Images